Why does my PolyBot Docker container exit immediately?

Run 'docker logs polybot' to see the startup error. Common causes are a missing or malformed .env file, an invalid API key format, or insufficient memory. Check that all required environment variables are set and that your VPS has at least 512MB free RAM.

Why is PolyBot showing an invalid API key error?

Re-generate your L2 API key from the Polymarket profile page. L2 keys expire or become invalid if you log out or reset your account. Make sure the key in your .env file matches exactly — no trailing spaces or newlines. Also confirm CHAIN_ID=137 for Polygon mainnet.

Why can't I access the PolyBot dashboard?

First confirm the container is running with 'docker ps'. If running on a VPS, check that port 8080 is open in your firewall (ufw allow 8080). If running locally, navigate to http://localhost:8080. Check browser console for CORS or connection errors.

Why is PolyBot not placing any trades?

Check three things: (1) PAPER_MODE should be false for live trading, (2) CONFIDENCE_THRESHOLD may be set too high — try lowering from 0.75 to 0.65, (3) DAILY_LOSS_LIMIT may have already been hit for today. Check the dashboard Logs tab for the reason the bot is skipping markets.

Why is Telegram not sending alerts?

Verify TELEGRAM_TOKEN is correct (from @BotFather), confirm you have started a conversation with your bot, and check TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID is your personal chat ID (use @userinfobot to find it). The bot must receive at least one message from you before it can send proactive messages.

Troubleshooting Guide

Symptoms, root causes, and exact fixes for the most common PolyBot issues. Use the sidebar to jump to your error type.

Quick First Step

90% of issues are visible in the container logs. Always start here before anything else:

docker logs polybot --tail 50

🐳 Docker & Startup

Symptom

Container exits immediately after docker compose up -d

CauseMissing or malformed .env file, invalid API key format, or an uncaught startup exception.

FixRun docker logs polybot and scroll to the last error line. The most common message is "KeyError: POLYMARKET_API_KEY" — meaning a required variable is missing from your .env. Compare your .env against the template in .env.example.

# View last 100 lines of logs
docker logs polybot --tail 100

# Verify your .env file exists
ls -la .env

# Check against the example template
diff .env .env.example

Symptom

Error: "Bind for 0.0.0.0:8080 failed: port is already allocated"

CauseAnother process (or a previously stopped PolyBot container) is already using port 8080.

FixEither stop the conflicting process, or change the port mapping in docker-compose.yml from 8080:8080 to a free port like 8181:8080.

# Find what's using port 8080
sudo lsof -i :8080

# Or kill any stopped containers holding the port
docker rm -f $(docker ps -aq --filter "name=polybot")

Symptom

Error: "permission denied while trying to connect to the Docker daemon socket"

CauseOn Linux, your user account is not in the docker group, so every Docker command requires sudo.

FixAdd your user to the docker group and re-login. You only need to do this once.

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
# Log out and back in, then:
docker ps   # should work without sudo

Symptom

Container starts but crashes with "Killed" — out of memory

CauseThe Linux OOM killer terminated the bot process because available RAM was exhausted. Common on $3/mo VPS plans with 512 MB RAM.

FixUpgrade your VPS to at least 1 GB RAM, or add a swap file as a temporary workaround. PolyBot requires a minimum of 512 MB free RAM; 1 GB is recommended for stable operation with the AI models loaded.

# Check current memory
free -h

# Add 1GB swap if needed (temporary fix)
sudo fallocate -l 1G /swapfile
sudo chmod 600 /swapfile
sudo mkswap /swapfile
sudo swapon /swapfile

🔑 API & Authentication

Symptom

Error: "Invalid L2 API key" or "401 Unauthorized"

CauseYour Polymarket L2 API key has expired, been revoked, or was copied incorrectly (trailing whitespace, missing characters).

FixLog into Polymarket → Profile → API Keys → Generate New Key. Copy the full key string into your .env file. Ensure there are no quotes around the value and no trailing spaces.

# Correct format in .env:
POLYMARKET_API_KEY=your-key-here
POLYMARKET_API_SECRET=your-secret-here
POLYMARKET_PASSPHRASE=your-passphrase-here
# Wrong — do NOT wrap in quotes:
POLYMARKET_API_KEY="your-key-here"

Symptom

Error: "Wrong chain_id" or orders rejected by API

CauseThe CHAIN_ID environment variable is not set to Polygon mainnet's chain ID.

FixPolymarket runs on Polygon (chain ID 137). Set CHAIN_ID=137 in your .env. If you're testing against a local fork or testnet, use the appropriate chain ID — but Polymarket itself only operates on mainnet.

# In .env:
CHAIN_ID=137

Symptom

Error: "429 Too Many Requests" in logs

CauseMultiple PolyBot instances running simultaneously sharing the same API key, or an aggressive polling interval hammering the REST API.

FixThe bot handles rate limits gracefully with exponential backoff by default. If you see persistent 429s, check that only one bot instance is running (docker ps) and increase POLL_INTERVAL_SECONDS in your config.

# Check for multiple running instances
docker ps --filter "name=polybot"

# In config.yml — increase poll interval
poll_interval_seconds: 30   # default: 15

Symptom

Error: "Allowance too low" or USDC spend not approved

CauseThe USDC ERC-20 spending allowance for the Polymarket CTF Exchange contract hasn't been approved from your wallet, so orders are rejected on-chain.

FixGo to Polymarket.com, connect your wallet, attempt to deposit or place a manual order. Polymarket will prompt you to approve the USDC allowance in your wallet (MetaMask). Approve at least the amount you plan to trade. This is a one-time on-chain transaction that costs a small POL gas fee.

📊 Dashboard

Symptom

Can't access dashboard at http://your-vps-ip:8080

CauseEither the container is not running, or the VPS firewall is blocking port 8080.

FixStep 1: Confirm the container is running. Step 2: Open port 8080 in UFW. Step 3: Confirm your cloud provider's security group also allows the port.

docker ps          # confirm polybot is Up
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
sudo ufw reload

Symptom

Dashboard loads but shows "No trades" even though bot is running

CauseBot is running in Paper Mode (no real orders), the API key doesn't match the connected wallet, or the bot genuinely hasn't found qualifying trades yet.

FixCheck the Status badge in the top-right of the dashboard. If it shows "Paper" mode, set PAPER_MODE=false and restart. If it shows "Live", check the Logs tab for "no markets above confidence threshold" messages — your CONFIDENCE_THRESHOLD may be too high.

Symptom

Dashboard settings not saving / reverting after refresh

CauseBrowser cache conflict or the API endpoint for saving config is returning an error.

FixHard-refresh the page (Ctrl+Shift+R). Open browser DevTools → Network tab → look for a failed PUT/POST request to /api/config. If you see a 403, the dashboard API auth token may have expired — log out and back in from the dashboard login screen.

📈 Trading Issues

Symptom

Bot is running but not placing any trades

CauseOne of: PAPER_MODE is on, CONFIDENCE_THRESHOLD is too high, DAILY_LOSS_LIMIT was already hit today, or no markets meet the liquidity filter.

FixWork through this checklist in order:

# 1. Check mode
grep PAPER_MODE .env
# Should be: PAPER_MODE=false

# 2. Lower confidence threshold temporarily to test
# In config.yml:
confidence_threshold: 0.60   # default 0.70

# 3. Check if daily loss limit triggered
docker logs polybot | grep "DAILY_LOSS_LIMIT"

# 4. Restart to reset daily counters
docker compose restart

Symptom

Orders placed but not filling — sitting open in order book

CauseThe bot is posting limit orders at a price no one is willing to trade at, or the market has very thin order book depth.

FixIncrease PRICE_TOLERANCE in config to allow the bot to post at a slightly worse price, improving fill probability. Alternatively enable USE_MARKET_ORDERS=true for immediate fills (at cost of potential slippage).

# In config.yml:
price_tolerance: 0.03    # accept up to 3% worse than mid
use_market_orders: false # set true for instant fills

Symptom

Instant cashout / sell not working

CauseThe on-chain sell transaction is failing because the wallet has insufficient POL for gas fees on Polygon.

FixSend a small amount of POL (Polygon's native token, formerly MATIC) to your trading wallet. 0.5–1 POL is enough for hundreds of transactions. Polymarket itself uses USDC for settlement but POL is required for gas.

📱 Telegram Alerts

Symptom

Bot not sending Telegram alerts at all

CauseInvalid TELEGRAM_TOKEN, wrong TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID, or you haven't initiated a conversation with the bot yet.

FixWork through this sequence:

# Step 1: Verify token is correct by calling Telegram API
curl "https://api.telegram.org/bot<YOUR_TOKEN>/getMe"
# Should return: {"ok":true, "result":{"username":"YourBotName",...}}

# Step 2: Get your chat ID — send /start to your bot,
# then call:
curl "https://api.telegram.org/bot<YOUR_TOKEN>/getUpdates"
# Look for "chat":{"id":XXXXXXX} in the response

# Step 3: Update .env
TELEGRAM_TOKEN=123456:ABCDefGHIJKLmnopQRSTUVwxyz
TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID=123456789

Symptom

Receiving duplicate Telegram messages for every trade

CauseTwo or more PolyBot instances are running simultaneously with the same Telegram credentials.

FixStop all running instances and restart only one:

# Stop all containers
docker stop $(docker ps -q --filter "name=polybot")

# Remove stopped containers
docker rm $(docker ps -aq --filter "name=polybot")

# Start fresh with one instance
docker compose up -d

Still Stuck?

If none of the above resolves your issue, collect full logs with docker logs polybot > polybot-debug.log and share it via the Support page. Include your OS, VPS specs, and PolyBot version.

Next Steps

FAQ — general questions about setup, costs, and performance
Updates & Changelog — check if a newer version fixes your bug
Best Practices — VPS setup, firewall, and monitoring to prevent issues
Configuration Reference — full list of .env and config.yml options

← FAQ Updates & Changelog →